Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE) Shares Cross Above 200-Day Moving Average - Here's Why

Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE - Get Free Report)'s stock price crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $35.81 and traded as high as $39.25. Astec Industries shares last traded at $39.23, with a volume of 111,977 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wall Street Zen raised Astec Industries from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th.

Astec Industries Price Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average of $39.19 and a 200-day moving average of $35.88. The company has a current ratio of 2.66, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The stock has a market cap of $969.46 million, a PE ratio of 64.23 and a beta of 1.40.

Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.42. The company had revenue of $329.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $320.40 million. Astec Industries had a return on equity of 10.72% and a net margin of 1.15%. Astec Industries's revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.34 EPS.

Astec Industries Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 13th were paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.23%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 13th. Astec Industries's payout ratio is currently 78.79%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Astec Industries

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Jane Street Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Astec Industries by 2.9% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 46,566 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,604,000 after acquiring an additional 1,305 shares in the last quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC grew its stake in Astec Industries by 32.4% during the 1st quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC now owns 12,393 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $427,000 after purchasing an additional 3,036 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its stake in Astec Industries by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 65,577 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,259,000 after purchasing an additional 1,358 shares in the last quarter. Uniplan Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new stake in Astec Industries during the 1st quarter worth about $979,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its position in Astec Industries by 188.2% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 148,351 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $5,111,000 after purchasing an additional 96,883 shares in the last quarter. 93.16% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Astec Industries Company Profile

Astec Industries, Inc designs, engineers, manufactures, and markets equipment and components used primarily in road building and related construction activities worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Infrastructure Solutions and Materials Solutions. The Infrastructure Solutions segment offers asphalt plants and related components, heaters, concrete dust control systems, asphalt pavers, vaporizers, concrete material handling systems, screeds, heat recovery units, paste back-fill plants, asphalt storage tanks, hot oil heaters, bagging plants, fuel storage tanks, industrial and asphalt burners and systems, custom batch plants, material transfer vehicles, soil stabilizing-reclaiming machinery, blower trucks and trailers, milling machines, soil remediation plants, wood chippers and grinders, pump trailers, concrete batch plants, control systems, liquid terminals, storage equipment and related parts, construction and retrofits, polymer plants, and concrete mixers, as well as engineering and environmental permitting services.